The cloth stuffed doll has been a favorite toy of children. Toy manufacturers seek inexpensive ways of producing a cloth stuffed doll that is safe for the child. Many dolls are undesirable because they utilize hard or removable head features that may be pulled or torn from the doll and pose a choking hazard to the child. Removable features, such as hair and plastic eyes are particularly hazardous for younger children.
One of the challenges manufacturers face in producing safe cloth stuffed dolls is ensuring the doll has features that are distinctive and attractive to children. One of the most attractive and distinctive features of the stuffed doll is the head. Children identify with the distinctive human features of the dolls head and may be particularly attracted to the doll's eyes and hair. Therefore, a toy manufacturer strives to produce cloth stuffed dolls with distinctive facial features and realistic but bright, thick, and long hair. At the same time, the toy manufacturer desires to produce a stuffed doll whose facial features and hair are secure and will not be broken or torn away from the dolls head portion.
One attractive and inexpensive partial solution is to produce a stuffed cloth doll with embroidered or sewn facial features that are bright and distinctive. Embroidered or sewn facial features provide texture and allow the manufacturer to produce dolls that vary in the color and design of the facial features simply and inexpensively. A child will be drawn to the textured and bright facial features, but there will be no attendant risk that these features will become dislodged from the head and pose a threat to the child.
While embroidering or sewing the facial features of the stuffed doll can be accomplished easily and inexpensively, producing a doll with desirable hair characteristics in such a manner to securely and effectively cover the head portion, however, has been difficult. Many stuffed dolls utilize a hard scalp portion because this makes it easier for the manufacturer to attach the hair to the doll's head while at the same time providing an opportunity for even and full hair coverage on the doll's head. Manufacturers often secure the hair to the hard scalp portion by gluing, bonding, or utilizing a root or plug style process of affixing the hair to the head. Incorporating a hard plastic scalp portion and the present method of affixing hair to the head, however, increases manufacturing costs and has the safety disadvantages previously discussed.
Manufacturers have also found it difficult to produce natural looking hair. Hair materials currently in use are often difficult to curl, have a tendency to tangle, are not easily combed, or do not possess sheen emulating natural hair. Therefore, it is desirable to produce a doll with distinctive embroidered or sewn facial features and hair that is directly sewn onto a soft cloth scalp portion of the doll providing attractive full and natural looking scalp coverage that is safe for a child.